Who Lived Here?

Beginning the Historic Tax Credit Application

My husband marvels at the amount of knowledge I have regarding homes in the area. I tell him that I had free reign from the time I was very young, my mother trusting the watchful eyes of neighbors and relatives. She worked long hours as a single parent, leaving my brothers and me to our own devices. I became a student of people and their homes. I loved walls that spoke, windows that heard, and floors that anchored me in storytelling of people who make a house a home.

All this is to say that living in our current home led to the need for as much cost savings as possible, which led us to seek historic tax credits. The state of Kentucky has a lucrative program for residential properties as long as all the ‘I’s are dotted and the ‘T’s crossed. The staff at the Kentucky Heritage Council are very helpful during the process, their guidance is invaluable.  

Our indoor water feature that occurred shortly after we moved in led to uncovering the intimate details of the home. But the story truly unfolded when we walked through the beveled glass door. My work as a writer seemed to be defined as this could be home when the sun caste its light on the ‘W’ etched in the middle of the door.

The first step in a tax credit application is to confirm that the place is in an historic district. That fact makes an application far easier than to create a factual reason to put the property on the National Historic Register, (which requires deep research into the architecture, persons, and/or placement of the property). Then it becomes easier when a house is also contributing to the district. Luckily, we satisfied both. Much of the pre-work was already done when we began to tell the story of the house.

Deed work at a county office is critical research. It helps to create the foundation of the story of a house. A previous owner had built a family room with a handicap accessible bathroom in the eighties. Combing P.V.A. records for owners, one popped up from 1962 to 2000.  I found that the square footage and number of bathrooms increased during that time. One more step back and a man named Hayes who owned a butcher shop down the alley on the main thoroughfare, had kept the house from 1912 to ‘62. His wife’s name was Magnolia. A story emerged that confirmed a legend about a grand magnolia tree aside the backporch that was under the family room. However, the true mystery was the original owner who put his stamp on the house with the ‘W’ etched in the front door, his time in the house just four years.

Stephen Wagner was a hotelier in Cincinnati. The house belies his affection for fine things even though the footprint is smaller than other grand homes in our area. We aren’t sure of the reasoning behind such things as a set of back steps from the kitchen, but they reminded me of Esmeralda in the last home. Perhaps Mr. Wagner and his wife Mary had a need for ‘help,’ I can only surmise.

I thought I was hot on the trail of Mr. Wagner, but a deep search of Ancestry.com as well as FamilySearch.org turned up very little. The story of the house and the surrounding neighborhood became clearer though when Mr. Hayes acquired the home. An established church down the street, with German language on sandstone had been the site of a conference for women of the Klu Klux Klan in 1924. An easy half block away, Mr. Hayes served residents on busy days when the streetcar delivered people from their jobs in Cincinnati. Perhaps Magnolia donned her swimsuit, gathered her small daughter, and walked to Queen City Beach on a hot summer day to bathe in the Ohio River.  

As a fiction writer, I have a penchant for “enriching” the truth, but this project must have well-researched truth. While putting together Part One of the tax credit application I was contacted by the owner of the house from 1962-2000. She had pictures from when they acquired the home. It is a precious archive of photographic history. Things such as a bathtub and water closet installed the hallway, perhaps after the house was fitted with indoor plumbing. The old magnolia tree is pictured as well as a wrought iron fence that was designed by a local iron works company in 1894. The woman handed the photos over and put her head in her hands asking forgiveness for throwing away a stained-glass window that made the living room too dark. Mia culpa.

Not all states have such lucrative programs as Kentucky. We have a broad spectrum of historical properties and districts. Our heritage as a state stretches back to 1792. It’s nice to know that the state recognizes that to move forward we must find ways to understand the past. The Heritage Council is part of that dynamic.

Our house’s story continues, the work daunting but worthwhile as we lovingly honor those who have loved the plaster, tongue and groove floor hidden under Home Depot wood, layers of paint, and love. It whispers to me still. 

Tune in next week when I talk about Part Two of the tax credit application.